Internet and Technology in Schools: Why We Shouldn’t Pull the Plug

Most parents of school-aged kids are aware of a current debate taking place on- and off-line, regarding the use of computer technology and the Internet at school. During the past week, there has been a lot of heated comments on theThe Huffington Post as a result of Laurie David and Susan Stiffelman’s recent post, “Technology and Schools: Should We Add More or Pull the Plug?”

I believe in teaching children in school and at home the importance of balancing technology in their lives and how to use the Internet responsibly, in tandem with a lot of teacher and parent supervision. I’ve seen technology offer my daughter educational experiences that wouldn’t have been as dynamic for her otherwise.

Internet games accessed in school libraries—such as Free Rice, which donates 10 grains of rice for each question kids get right through the World Food Program, international pen pal programs run by Students of the World and cultural exchanges like the Thorn Tree project—exemplify how the Internet can be used as tool to enhance learning, broaden children’s knowledge of the world and further their understanding of different cultures.

Packer Collegiate, a pre-K through grade 12 private school in Brooklyn, NY, has established an ongoing cultural exchange and fundraising program with the Ndonyo Wasin Primary School in Kenya, which is also part of the Thorn Tree project. Named for the thorn trees under which the preschool children meet, the Thorn Tree project is an exchange between educators in the north Kenyan region of Sereolipi and Jane Newman, a retired New York City advertising executive. The venture has raised funds to build classrooms and dormitories to house students and has boosted the number of children attending primary school in the region from 132 in 2001 to 651 in 2008. No doubt, the learning exchanges between the U.S. and Kenyan schools would not have been as successful without the use of technology and the Internet.

At Packer, students in the second grade begin a pen pal exchange via e-mail with the second graders at Ndonyo Wasin. One year, fourth graders at each school collaborated to write and produce short videos about their schools and share them with one another.

In an article on the school’s website, Andrea Kelly, Lower School Head at Packer Collegiate said “Our goal has always been to provide both schools with an exciting window on another world. We want them to know that there are many different ways to live a life. And with all the differences, we want them to identify the commonalities between their cultures.”

The fourth-graders’ videos described on Packer’s website showcase these ideas beautifully. In the Packer video, the children proudly display a large garden in which they play, the infra-red controlled sinks and soap dispensers in the restrooms and the wide selection of books in the library. In the Kenyan piece, the students lead a virtual tour of Ndonyo Wasin—through the dormitories equipped with mosquito netting, into the solar-powered library where the children can watch Sesame Street, and by the athletic fields where children play “football” (soccer) and netball (a game like basketball). With pride they introduce viewers to two of the 40 camels on Ndonyo Wasin’s campus that provide milk for the school, as well as the solar-powered well that gives clean water to the whole school. Previously, the students had to fetch water from a well that was two miles away.

While these are just a few initiatives, countless schools are using technology wisely. Sadly, Laurie David and Susan Stiffelman, who claim to be “in the trenches” as a mother and psychologist, seem far removed from the innovation that educators, who are also deep “in the trenches,” are making on this front.

Comments

Thanks for writing about this.It was refreshing to read your positive views on the abilty the internet has to deliver the world to our children. I have found it to be a wonderful educational tool and just like anything, moderation and parental involvement are key.My daughter is in the 3rd grade in a public school in CT. They have done a wonderful job including technology in her curriculum. There is a particular site they are asked to visit often called Brain Pop. I only wish I had had the chance to learn in such a clear cut simple manner.